Low BM skill is not a reason for rejection of a passport application | Daily Express Malaysia

Low BM skill is not a reason for rejection of a passport application

Immigration Director-General Ruslin Jusoh said lack of proficiency in Bahasa Melayu should not stand in the way of passport applications. (Facebook photo)

PETALING JAYA: Passport applications cannot be rejected solely on the basis of the applicant’s inability to speak Bahasa Melayu, the immigration department says. Director General Ruslin Jusoh said immigration officials will still carry out random checks on various parts of the applications.

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“Nonetheless, these checks must be conducted professionally and courteously,” he said in a statement. He was responding to reports of a Chinese man who was unable to renew his elderly mother’s passport at UTC Komtar, Penang because she was not fluent in Bahasa Melayu. Ruslin said the woman managed to renew her passport and pick it up at UTC on Monday. Interior Minister Saifuddin Nasution Ismail also previously said that being fluent in Bahasa Melayu had never been specified as a condition for obtaining a passport.

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He said no passport application has been rejected due to language issues. However, Saifuddin said Malaysians are expected to have a basic knowledge of Bahasa Melayu when interacting with staff at government counters to facilitate the procedure.

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